Betts beats Red Sox at salary arbitration

Outfielder Mookie Betts won his salary arbitration case against the Red Sox Thursday and was awarded a salary of $10.5 million for 2018. The Red Sox had filed at $7.5 million. As is always the case with arbitration hearings, the panel of arbiters hearing the case must pick one number or the other -- there is no in-between.

"Mookie is a tremendous player,'' Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski wrote in an e-mail. "We thought we presented a solid case to have our number selected. However, you are never surprised with an arbitration decision.''

The number is the second-highest figure given to a player in his first year of arbitration eligibility. Earlier this month, the Chicago Cubs and Kris Bryant settled at $10.85 million, avoiding a hearing.



BSJ ANALYSIS: The result here will likely catch some in the industry by surprise. MLBTradeRumors.com, which has a strong history of projecting such things, pegged Betts at a $8.2 million salary for 2018 last fall, and given that the Red Sox were far closer to that number with their filing than Betts was, the supposition was that the club was positioned for a win.

Then again, these hearings can be notoriously difficult to predict and today's case is no different.

The backdrop here, of course, is that this is the second straight off-season in which the Sox failed to reach agreement with their best player on a one-year deal. Last year, when Betts didn't have the leverage of arbitration, the team renewed him, even as they did so at a generous figure ($950,000), one of the highest salaries for a non-arbitration eligible player.

Still, one wonders if there's any lingering resentment between the sides and what impact these somewhat contentious negotiations might have in the Red Sox getting a long-term contract extension done with Betts -- either soon, or after the 2020 season when he first becomes eligible for arbitration.

Hearings can be tough on players, since they're exposed to arguments from their employers as to why they don't deserve the salary they've requested. Such hearings can create ill-will between the sides.

A year ago, Betts maintained that there were no hard feelings over the renewal. But hearings, where teams highlight perceived shortcomings, are another matter altogether.